On a recent visit, my sister left one of her alphabet rubber stamp sets. Their original box was the clear plastic kind which collapsed. I had put them into a sandwich bag, but since I’m not diligent about cleaning them after every use, they rubbed against each other and got pretty messy. Not only did they need to be thoroughly cleaned before I returned them, they also needed a new box.

First, I poured a little rubbing alchohol into a saucer and let them stand to soak off the dried ink. Then I used an old piece of cotton flannel rag (dipped in the alcohol) to clean the ink off of the wooden sides. I’m guessing that cleaning rubber stamps with alcohol is frowned upon by stampers deluxe. However, it works for me. It’s cheap, fast and it usually effective.

For the box, I realized that a macaroni and cheese box was the right depth (if laid down flat), but too long, so I emptied the macaroni into a clean jar and set aside the cheese packet.

Then I cut off the end of the box, leaving an extra 3″ (approximately) to fold back in to make the fourth side. After folding it in, I secured it with masking tape.

The lid was made with an extra piece of the box cut to width and long enough to cover the top and go over the back edge. I affixed it with masking tape, also.

Then came the fun part of cutting old book pages to cover the box, both inside and out, including the bottom of the box. Now I can’t remember if I used the JoAnn’s brand of tacky glue or the clear, fast drying Beacon’s, but it was one or the other.

To make a fastener, I punched small holes in the lid and another right below that one on the front. I threaded a bread wrapper twist-tie through the holes and then twisted the ends together.

And speaking of cheap (this chipboard box project cost absolutely nothing), that work surface that the box is sitting on is indeed an old phone book. It’s ideal for me. When gluing, I don’t have to be too careful; if I get glue onto it (and I always do), I just tear off a page and then I have another clean, glue-free surface.

You’re welcome. I enjoyed your post on the Japanese tape. After reading that one, I tried making some twist-ties from fabric and paper. They actually turned out fairly well, which I didn’t really expect since I didn’t have the kind of tape you were using.